Conflicting Backstage Rumors On Oba Femi Possibly Being Called Up To WWE Main Roster
After a dominant run as NXT North American Champion, Oba Femi finally met his match in the form of Tony D'Angelo this past month. Not only did D'Angelo defeated Femi to win the North American Title during "NXT's" debut on The CW, but D'Angelo was able to hold onto it this past Sunday at NXT Halloween Havoc, winning a Tables, Ladders, and Scares match. And those two losses were unusual enough for Femi that it now has some wondering if big changes could be coming to his future.
Taking to X earlier this afternoon, Fog Jones of PWN tweeted that a rumor was circulating that Femi had "said his goodbyes" to the "NXT" roster following Halloween Havoc last night, and that he could be moving up to "WWE Raw" as early as tonight. In a followup tweet, Jones noted that he himself hadn't come from a source of his, but had originated in a private account, and invited fans to speculate however they wanted.
Rumors are circulating that Oba Femi said his goodbyes last night at #HalloweenHavoc – to the NXT Roster.
The belief is that he may be #WWERaw bound, potentially as early as tonight.
What are your thoughts, if true? pic.twitter.com/nYLD7OvDrz
— Fog Jones | PWN Founder ☝🏼 (@MarcPwn) October 28, 2024
These rumors are not derived from a PWN source, rather a private account. In respect of their privacy, I will not name the source.
They are free to inform me that they would like to be sourced, and followers of course can speculate as they wish.
Grain of salt this. https://t.co/TbqlUDE52u
— Fog Jones | PWN Founder ☝🏼 (@MarcPwn) October 28, 2024
Shortly after, Corey Brennan of Fightful also took to X to comment on the rumors, revealing he hadn't heard anything about Femi being called up. Instead, Brennan said that many within "NXT" had seen Femi as the one to potentially dethrone Trick Williams for the NXT World Championship, possibly even at NXT Stand & Deliver come WrestleMania 41 weekend. While Brennan didn't go as far to debunk the rumor he made clear that "it doesn't pass the immediate smell test," though he has continued to reach out to sources in order to confirm or rebuke the story.
Asking about this but haven't heard anything to suggest Oba is coming up.
Many in NXT see him as next in line for the title. https://t.co/9264bbAT7V
— Corey Brennan Of Fightful.com (@CoreyBrennanFF) October 28, 2024
All I've seen on Oba Femi is that a random account that is private mentioned that Oba is rumored to be coming up.
I have no idea where this rumor came from, and while I haven't confirmed it to be false, it doesn't pass the immediate smell test.
— Corey Brennan Of Fightful.com (@CoreyBrennanFF) October 28, 2024
What I know about the Oba Femi rumor so far.
- With RAW being in Hershey, there's undoubtedly an opportunity to debut/bring in NXT stars for one time appearances.
- Oba has long been viewed as a future WWE Champion internally, as far back as winning the North American title.... pic.twitter.com/M4yUEXM4HM
— Corey Brennan Of Fightful.com (@CoreyBrennanFF) October 28, 2024
I want to be absolutely clear that as of now I'm not debunking the rumor or claiming it is 100% false.
If I do, you guys will be the first to know. https://t.co/yhQtW36Ceb
— Corey Brennan Of Fightful.com (@CoreyBrennanFF) October 28, 2024
Additionally, people don't just "say goodbye" when they leave NXT.
All recent callups have had big moments with producers, HBK, other roster members and more and most have had it filmed for social media. https://t.co/yhQtW364oD
— Corey Brennan Of Fightful.com (@CoreyBrennanFF) October 28, 2024
If Femi does make his main roster debut tonight, he will do so in Hershey, Pennsylvania, where "Raw" will emulate out of in its usual 8 p.m. timeslot.